Most sought after Classic & Vintage bike???...

[-ick3nin.vend3t]

I was just wandering if there happened to be a most sought after classic bike, the "ultimate"?. Is there such a bike? (Within the same realms or time frame of the Gios Torino being introduced).

If not...

I was just wandering what you guys regard most sought after Classic bike???...

 

[alfeng]

I was just wandering if there happened to be a most sought after classic bike, the "ultimate"?. Is there such a bike? (Within the same realms or time frame of the Gios Torino being introduced).

If not...

I was just wandering what you guys regard most sought after Classic bike???...

I'm not familiar with the specific GIOS Torino which you are referring to ...

FWIW. I would like to have a 1961 MASI Special.

 

[kdelong]

This is very subjective. Everyone has their own favorites. As far as colletables are concerned, you can get a good price from the few collectors that there are on Raleigh Choppers, Schwinn Orange Krates, and Schwinn Black Phantoms, but very few other bicycles appreciate in value. I like the high end 1980's Raleighs, the Centurion Iron Man series, any Masi, and a whole lot more, but they have to fit me and be able to be fully restored. As far as specific bikes, the 1984 Raleigh USA Super Course (see my avatar) and the 1986 Centurion Iron Man Expert are my preferences.

 

[oldbobcat]

There are no holy grails, but the bikes Mario Confente built under his own name get a lot of attention, partly because they are so elegant and partly because he made so few of them before he died.

 

[garage sale GT]

I'd say it was the Peugeot PX10 now.

Surely there are higher end, more expensive bikes but they typically come from smaller boutique makers, and everyone has their favorite, so no one is the MOST sought after, and they're more than many want to spend unless they need a lot of work.

 

[JML]

Like any other hand-crafted vintage item, the higher the quality and the smaller the production usually results in most being sought-after. And the mystique and rarity is enhanced if the person wasn't able to build more after the reputation was earned; that's one reason the previously mentioned Confente, & 3Rensho bikes, are so coveted.

And as for quality...

View attachment 11939

 

[JML]

More pictures in my Album:

 

[vspa]

Bianchi ** custom light-blue color is a classic
Colnago ** Master X Light. They introduced straight Forks (developed by them and Ferrari ) among other unique stuff
Gios ** custom blue also a classic
Benotto ** Moser rig for Paris Roubaix
Cycles Gitane ** Ridden by Hinault, Fignon and Lemond
Peugeot ** very succesfull team

 

[oldbobcat]

Like any other hand-crafted vintage item, the higher the quality and the smaller the production usually results in most being sought-after. And the mystique and rarity is enhanced if the person wasn't able to build more after the reputation was earned; that's one reason the previously mentioned Confente, & 3Rensho bikes, are so coveted.

3Rensho is very special for being innovative but still respectful of traditional bike building. And the workmanship is hangs with the best of the best.

In the late '70s and early '80s, Colnagos and California Masis were almost commonplace (but very nice), we all loved our Gioses (one guy even named his dog Gios), and then we had individualists with the odd DeRosa or Marinoni. But 3Rensho, Confente, or a Confente-built Masi are the bikes I'd cross a busy street to look at.

 

[JML]

I remember last summer when I went out for two rides around Pittsburgh with my son, I kept having to stop because other riders wanted to see the bike. It sure impressed my son, who said it was like driving a Ferrari 250 GTO and having everyone else just stop in their tracks and stare.

When someone mentions a Confente, the sound of his voice has many of the same overtones as a prayer. That was true even in the 1980s.

 

[531Aussie]

This seems a good time to pimp Ray Dobbins' bikes again

Ray Dobbins Bike Photo Gallery

 

[oldbobcat]

Just as Gios got its cachet from Roger DeVlaeminck's Paris-Roubaix rides, Ciocc rose to significance through their equipage of the USSR national team, in 1984 I believe.

Gios was the first to fully chrome the fork, ostensibly for better lateral stiffness. Into the '80s, right chainstays started getting the treatment. Ciocc raised the ante by doing the for and the entire rear triangle.

 

[531Aussie]

Gios was the first to fully chrome the fork, ostensibly for better lateral stiffness. Into the '80s, right chainstays started getting the treatment. Ciocc raised the ante by doing the for and the entire rear triangle.

Ha! I didn't know that. I thought chroming was coz paint chipped too easily when stuff flicked up off the tyres

 

[531Aussie]

Anyway, yeah, there are heaps of sought-after 'classic' frames. Don't forget Bottecchia.

Around here, I'd say Colnago and Merckx frames are probably the most popular.

Most people think 'really old' when asked about classic steel, but lots of '80s and '90s bikes are considered hip and retro, such as Concorde, Rossin, etc

 

[stevegreer]

I can't really speak for what is the ultimate, all-time most sought after classic. But for me personally the most sought after classic is my dad's 1974 Motobecane Grand Record! He bought it back in 1975 just a couple of months before I was born and has had it ever since, so I don't see him giving it up anytime soon.

 

[vspa]

I can't really speak for what is the ultimate, all-time most sought after classic. But for me personally the most sought after classic is my dad's 1974 Motobecane Grand Record! He bought it back in 1975 just a couple of months before I was born and has had it ever since, so I don't see him giving it up anytime soon.

i recall them quite good, i was a bit older than you
they look cool and had good reputation

 

[oldbobcat]

A young guy came to the shop today with his dad's early '80s Masi Gran Criterium (California). Lugged steel (probably Reynolds 531), Shimano 600 (non-indexed), 3TTT bar and quill stem, 4-cross clincher wheels with mismatched rims. A very special bike, but not the holy grail.

He wanted to know if he should modernize it (cassette wheels, control levers, etc.) I said leave it alone. Overhaul it, clean it, and enjoy it for what it is.

 

[stevegreer]

i recall them quite good, i was a bit older than you
they look cool and had good reputation

Very true! It is a beautiful bike. As far as I know the only thing he has changed on it since buying it is changing his shifters from the down tube to bar ends.

And oldbobcat, you did the cycling world a huge favor by convincing that kid to leave his bike as it was.

 

[oldbobcat]

And oldbobcat, you did the cycling world a huge favor by convincing that kid to leave his bike as it was.

Well, I don't know if I convinced him, but he seemed impressed at the time.

But updating the bike never does it justice, especially after you've bent the stays and then realigned the dropouts (I hope). Also, you can often get a new bike for less than what the components for the upgrade would cost.

 

[oldbobcat]

FWIW. I would like to have a 1961 MASI Special.

Alf, are you familiar with the 1961 Masi Special replica that was built by Rob Roberson and Joe Bell for Speedplay? Here's the story, in case you're interested--http://www.speedplay.com/speedplaylabs/masi/

I'll bet you can tell which is the original without looking a the labels under the photos.